Snow Day Memories

Wednesday, February 10, 2010 - 02:42 PM

Lots of listeners remember the foods that their parents would make when blizzards hit:

Growing up in western Washington state, I remember the smell of oatmeal being made and the radio on with the farm report playing, and then the anouncement would come on that schools were closed. –Patty Nielsen

My mother was a teacher. She enjoyed snow days as much as any child. She would make homemade donuts on snow days. –Barbara Davis

And lots of people called out activities they'd do outside, despite the snow and cold:

I'm from Idaho, the best memories I have of snow days were when my mom would come in around 5am, when the school district had announced the snow day, to tell me I could sleep in. I was always too excited to sleep; as soon as it got light my brother and I put on our ski clothes and went out to play. -Anna

I remember missing nearly six weeks of my junior year of high school due to blizzards in rural Indiana. We played outside and read books, of course, but mostly we played games at the kitchen table.

My mother loved cards, and when playing with kids, she especially loved a card game called Casino, which involved speed and math. Sometimes I saw cards flipping in my dreams. I knew we'd been home for days when I could finally beat my mother at a card game or two— then we would switch to Yahtzee. When we tired of competition, we'd build card houses that would rival The Brady Bunch's famous play-off. –Denise Frame Harlan

Richard, from Riverdale, saw politics when he had a particular day off:

This is Richard in Riverdale. In 1961 it was a snow day that convinced me God was a Democrat. Five inches of snow in Bridgeport; schools were closed, and I got to see JFK take the oath of office.

And one listener, a self-described "Yooper," wrote in about combining both food and foolhardy activities in the cold reaches of Michigan's Upper Peninsula:

I grew up in the Western Upper Peninsula of Michigan - an area known as "Big Snow Country" where no amount of snowfall was enough to warrant a day off of school. To elicit a snow day the windchill had to be 30 degrees below zero - the kind of cold that burns the inside of your nose the second you step outside - and so blustery and icy that every bus would inevitably end up in a ditch shortly after leaving the parking lot.

When these inclement conditions were met, my friends and I were overjoyed to the point that our judgment was impaired because we'd all end up at the ski hill together. Bundled beyond recognition we'd take one run, then rush into the chalet for shelter and hot chocolate. After an hour or so when we could finally feel our toes again, we'd take another run, then rush back into the chalet for refuge. –Elle Gotham

What's your favorite snow day memory?

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Comments [2]

christine
from Brooklyn

As we approach our 15th anniversary, I remember falling in love with my husband and the city on our first snow days together in February 1995. Roaming the quieted city together, coming home to make chocolate chip cookies. Yesterday, we did some of the same things, this time with our 13 year old son. Falling in love with both of them and the city all over again.

To John--I am surprised that when you heard that thump of the snowball while driving that you did not promptly call your car manufacturer and complain about some sort of systemic failure with your vehicle--Were you driving a Prius? I think Toyota has a recall bulletin for that